Don’t hold its nudge-wink references against it, though. Verbinski cleverly appropriates bits from untouchable golden classics: The campfire scene recalls “Blazing Saddles.” The rusty squeak of the ceiling fan in the tavern is that of the windmill in Sergio Leone’s “Once Upon a Time in the West.” Bad guy Rattlesnake Jake’s hat and mustache bear a more-than-passing resemblance to Lee Van Cleef in “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.” The showdowns in the thoroughfare recall too many meet-at-dawn six-shooter duels to count: “High Noon” or “Tombstone” or pretty much anything in which Clint Eastwood wore spurs.

Speaking of the venerable Eastwood: his iconic Man With No Name is even a character in “Rango,” dubbed The Spirit of the West (and voiced with an Eastwoodian sandpaper growl by Timothy Olyphant, himself the protagonist of the great TV Western “Deadwood”). Eastwood’s poncho-wearing, cigar-chewing Man is – like Akira Kurosawa’s samurai characters before him - an existential anti-hero defined entirely by his actions and a fascinating moral ambiguity where brutality is employed for the sake of the downtrodden - or for more self-serving means. (The latest in a long line of such iconic cinematic figures? Ryan Gosling’s Driver in “Drive.”)

Rango exists in a similar space. He’s a blank slate of a character, once confined to the social isolation of an aquarium, where he acted out all the parts in his sad, lonely theater productions. Freed to find himself in a barren desert, he, like the chameleon he is, redefines himself on the fly as a heroic savior for oppressed townsfolk. He doesn’t know what he’s doing, which is funny, but his improvisational skills come in handy, and he’s gifted with good luck.

“Rango” does not define itself within the family-film genre ghetto. It is rife with clever oddity. Its talking-animal characters are more strange and ugly than cute and cuddly – most memorably disturbing are the bird with an arrow permanently lodged in his eye socket, and a run-over roadside armadillo who’s understandably philosophical about the entirety of existence. The script features the line, “I once found a human spinal column in my fecal matter.” It references Kim Novak, a classic “Hitchcock Blonde,” and “Apocalypse Now.” It dares to make Johnny Depp’s voice almost unrecognizable, lost in the characterization. It is edgy and sophisticated on many fronts.

Notably, “Rango” is Verbinski’s first venture into directing animation. He’s best known for helming the first three “Pirates of the Caribbean” films, and here, famously had his cast – an inspired cadre including Depp, Ned Beatty, Isla Fisher and Harry Dean Stanton – act out their roles on a soundstage instead of seating them in front of a microphone for voiceovers. He animated them before they were animated, and the energy translates to the final product.

But what’s the likelihood of “Rango” winning the Oscar? Its only viable competition is “Kung Fu Panda 2,” another identity-quest story. It’s more imminently loveable than “Rango,” but sacrifices some creativity at the altar of audience-friendliness. Among the other nominees, “Puss in Boots” is comparatively forgettable, and the previously unknown “A Cat in Paris” and “Chico and Rita” face an impossible uphill climb.

“Rango” was an unlikely success, grossing $244 million worldwide. And that, without the benefit of 3-D upcharges - Verbinski wisely avoided the pitfall of sacrificing vivid colors for artificial extradimensional effects. The film doesn’t carry the cynical air of capitalism – it’s a creative venture from start to finish, uncompromising in tone but superficially accessible in its comedy and artful visuals. It pushes Pixar – who stumbled in 2011 with the terribly underwhelming “Cars 2,” rightfully ignored by Oscar – in its artistry. Many labeled it “weird.” That’s high praise. It likely will be one of the few films truly deserving its Oscar win.